Antique Victorian Parlor Table Makeover
Victorian antique parlor table makeover with damaged wood grain. Save ugly wood grain with a two-tone stain on your next painted furniture project
Victorian Style Antique Parlor Table Makeover
This antique parlor table was brought to me by my customer, Wayne, with a tremendous story and family history. It originally belonged to his great-grandparents who were married in 1893 in Missouri and then traveled by covered wagon to Indiana, where his great-grandfather (shown in the photo below) was the justice of the peace as well as the town Marshall. The family bible, also shown in the photos below, along with the table was given to Wayne’s grandparents, who later passed them to his parents and then to Wayne and his wife Maria, where they plan to use it to display their family bible.
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Before – Unfinished Antique Parlor Table
In addition to a heartfelt story, this antique table also comes with damage that I suppose you can expect with an old table. The top was separating, one leg was broken and it was more wobbly than a newborn giraffe.
The antique table went immediately into repair mode. The broken leg was glued and patched. Working slowly around the entire edge of the table, the table top was glued and clamped in sections.
Bricks were even used to weigh down areas where the glue was inserted underneath. 
To get into the small areas I used a wood glue syringe, it allowed me to get enough glue inside the layers without making a mess. The syringes can be found online here – glue syringe and are so easy to use.
I also used the syringe to add wood glue to all the joints under the table where the legs came together with the top to address the wobbliness. This was done a little at a time to build up and strengthen the base. 
Wood Grain
The top of the parlor table was also sanded down to reveal gorgeous wood grain and then not so gorgeous grain. Womp womp. After zooming on the original photos I was able to see that these imperfections were hiding under the previous dark stain all along. You can only imagine the pure joy I felt when I started to see the beautiful grain followed by some choice bad words when the center was revealed. But we can work with this!
After some discussion, we decided that the best thing to do would be to preserve the outer sides and cover the center ugliness. This was achieved with a two-tone stain. The entire top of the antique wood table was covered in a chocolate cherry stain and then taped off to address the center area. The center was then given a custom mixed extra dark chocolate cherry stain to cover the uneven and discolored grain. 
The rest of the parlor table was prepped and hand painted in a custom-mixed light cocoa. The color is sort of like hot chocolate once the marshmallows are melted. The base and legs were then distressed to bring out the details and capture the history of the wood before being sealed for protection. You can find great paint options online HERE
The Result – Hand Painted Antique Parlor Table
From covered wagon to two tone stain. This parlor table will serve to hold the family bible for years to come.
If you like painted parlor tables make sure to check out this other beauty – Eggplant Parlor Table Makeover
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Beautiful result from this damaged table. You did it!
thank you Lynne!
I absolutely love what you did with this. That chocolate color is almost mouthwatering. And it makes a beautiful contrast with the white. Very unexpected and very striking! Definitely pinning for future projects.
thank you so much Mary!! xoxo
This is gorgeous, Kandice! I love that you could preserve portions of the top of the table. The color choices are stunning together. Thanks for sharing at Snickerdoodle Sunday. Sharing all over!
Thank you so much!! xoxo
I love the creative solution to the top issues… I am curious what you used to seal it?
its sealed with very thin coats of clear varnish
Since am a nut for tables this is one awesome recovery. Looks like could have been a stinker to repair then paint/stain. Great shape to table and loved story about it. Enjoy your table, will you pass it down to your kids? You did wonderful job rehabilitating your table.
Happy daze
thank you so much, my customer is very happy with it too xoxo
That is beautiful! I love seeing old things become new again! Thank you for sharing with us at the #HomeMattersParty
I love this makeover! Thanks for sharing at Merry Monday!
This makeover is stunning! Looks like a brand new table! Thanks for sharing at Welcome Home Wednesdays!
thank you!! xoxo
simply beautiful! love the two toned look and that worked great to cover the bad wood while still looking stylish. This will be a table handed down for a few more generations now!
thank you so much! Yes the customer is very pleased with it 🙂
lovely story and great job with the table thanks for sharing have a great week
thank you so much! same to you xoxo
This is a gorgeous makeover! Thanks so much for sharing with us!
Did you do a gel stain or just go over the center several times? I have an ugly table top to cover up with dark stain, and I don’t want to buy more supplies.
kind of both. I did multiple layers of stain in the center to cover up the imperfections 🙂
I’ve been following your work for just a short time, always like what you do. I am a ‘repurposer’ also. As I watch the news coverage of people putting all their damaged household things on the curb. As I look, I see things out for the trash that appear to be repairable. Wish many of us DIYers could go to a warehouse in Houston, gather all the things that have been thrown out, redo them, and give back to original owners, or to other people who have lost everything. You wonder if everything is being pitched because of insurance reasons, having to dispose of things in order to collect insurance. Or do so many people just now have knowledge or skill to redo things…Just a thought
aww first thank you for following my work. And I agree with you about the items being thrown in the trash, its sad 🙁 I cant even imagine what is going through peoples minds though to lose so much 🙁
I have the matching center table to this 😳